I Have a Sword

When Ye Guan entered the box, he found himself in a strange world.

A kaleidoscope of spacetime surrounded him. Each spacetime world sparkled like a mirror, and they contained memories moving at an unimaginable speed; they were too fast for the naked eye to capture.

They were memories of an individual's reincarnation—memories of the High Gods and High Goddesses of the Tianxing Civilization. Each mirror represented a reincarnation, each one a lifetime of cultivation.

Hundreds of lifetimes—hundreds of cultivation experiences!

Ye Guan was overjoyed. This was a massive opportunity for him, as his greatest weakness was his lack of experience. These High Gods were the pinnacle of the Tianxing Civilization, and their memories could bestow upon him valuable experience.

With that in mind, Ye Guan closed his eyes…

As soon as Ye Guan entered the Spacetime Reincarnation Box, High Goddess Tianyun looked up from her book and frowned. After a moment, a complicated expression suffused her face, and she sighed. "That foolish girl…"

Yi Nian had not borrowed the Spacetime Reincarnation Box from High Goddess Tianyun. It was actually an item that High Goddess Tianyun had passed down to her, essentially making Yi Nian the next High Goddess of the Tianyun Academy.

High Goddess Tianyun’s intention was to give Yi Nian a protective charm.

If Yi Nian managed to obtain the inheritance of those reincarnations, her strength would improve significantly, and the Tianxing Civilization would never harm her.

The Reincarnation Box could only be opened once every million years, so Yi Nian would essentially become the next High Goddess by opening that box. She'd also be protected by the High Gods of the past, and even the Tianxing Ruler wouldn’t dare touch her.

However, High Goddess Tianyun was taken aback to know that Yi Nian had given that opportunity to that young swordsman.

High Goddess Tianyun withdrew her gaze and sighed again. "Foolish girl, I really hope he's the right man..."

Throughout the long history of the Tianxing Civilization, there had been many women who fell in love with outsiders, but they all met horrible fates.

If it were possible, she would advise Yi Nian otherwise, but when Yi Nian brought Ye Guan here, High Goddess Tianyun knew that she couldn’t persuade her otherwise. The quiet Yi Nian had always been stubborn as soon as she made up her mind, after all.

At this point, there was nothing she could do but support her.

Putting down her book, High Goddess Tianyun walked outside the main hall and looked up at the sky. Her eyes were filled with deep concern.

***

After leaving the Tianxing Divine World, Cui Yin led his people to search the hundreds of star fields nearby. They even initiated a carpet search of the nearby universe using the Tianxing Eye, but it was to no avail.

Cui Yin was puzzled.

Ye Guan and Yi Nian couldn't have gone far, and the Tianxing Civilization was known for its ability to monitor the vast expanse, so how come Ye Guan and Yi Nian managed to elude their eyes? It didn’t make sense at all.

Tianyun! Cui Yin's face darkened. High Goddess Tianyun had to be the one behind this. Otherwise, Ye Guan and Yi Nian couldn’t have evaded their search.

There was something wrong here!

Cui Yin ordered, "Recall our people."

A Tianxing Adjudicator bowed slightly and crushed a golden talisman.

Soon, a dozen adjudicators appeared nearby.

Cui Yin frowned, falling into deep contemplation.

Just then, they noticed a middle-aged man from afar.

Seeing the newcomer, Cui Yin frowned. "Second Hall Master?"

The newcomer was none other than Qiu Baiyi.

Qiu Baiyi greeted him with respect, saying, "Justice Officer Cui."

Cui Yin calmly asked, "Second Hall Master, is there something you need?"

Qiu Baiyi smiled and asked, "Justice Officer Cui, are you having trouble finding that Ye Guan?"

Cui Yin nodded and stared deeply at Qiu Baiyi. "Do you know where he is?"

"I don't know, but…" Qiu Baiyi remarked, "They say the most dangerous place is often the safest."

Cui Yin was stunned, and then he burst out laughing. "Second Hall Master, you’re indeed clever. I was thinking the same."

Qiu Baiyi was taken aback by that. "My wisdom doesn’t compare to yours, Justice Officer Cui."

"No need to be modest; you’re quite capable," Cui Yin remarked with a chuckle.

Qiu Baiyi remained silent.

Cui Yin suddenly asked, "The most dangerous place is often the safest. So where do you think they must be, Second Hall Master?"

"They must be in a place that is related to Tianyun," Qiu Baiyi remarked.

Cui Yin nodded. "That’s what I thought, too."

Qiu Baiyi’s lips twitched.

"Second Hall Master, there are many places related to Tianyun. Where do you think they could be? Don’t worry about getting it wrong. I have my own ideas."

Qiu Baiyi clenched his hand behind his back, but he quickly relaxed and smiled. "It is clear that Tianyun cares deeply about Yi Nian. She must have sent them to a place that she considers safe. As far as I know, Tianyun has a special cultivation grounds in the Tianxing—"

"Got it!" Cui Yin interrupted him, "The Tianxing Sea!"

Qiu Baiyi stared at Cui Yin but said nothing.

Cui Yin suddenly declared, "Let’s go to the Tianxing Sea."

Just as they were about to leave, Qiu Baiyi called out, "Wait."

Cui Yin turned to Qiu Baiyi.

Qiu Baiyi smiled and remarked. "Justice Officer Cui, I have a suggestion. Maybe I’m overthinking it, but can you hear me out and correct me if I'm wrong?"

"Sure." Cui Yin nodded. "Go ahead."

Qiu Baiyi said seriously, "If Ye Guan and Yi Nian are really at the Tianxing Sea, there's a high chance that Tianyun will notice your appearance there. If she intervenes again…"

Qiu Baiyi pondered over his words carefully before continuing, "Of course, I know that you’re not afraid of Tianyun, but if a conflict arises, what are you going to do by then?"

Cui Yin’s face darkened. If a conflict were to break out, he wouldn't be able to defeat Tianyun. High Goddess Tianyun's strength was terrifying.

"I have a suggestion. Decide if it’s worth considering once you've heard it," Qiu Baiyi said.

Cui Yin nodded. "Go on."

Qiu Baiyi suggested, "You will inevitably be in conflict with Tianyun by going there. To ensure that a fight won't break out, I suggest you do two things first.

"First of all, you should rally the public's opinion to your side. Yi Nian broke the divine laws and fell in love with an outsider; everyone in the Tianxing Civilization will surely see that as a disgrace.

"This matter hasn’t blown up yet, but you can work on that yourself. Once it blows up, the people of Tianxing will surely come to the Tianxing Sea to help with the arrest."

Qiu Baiyi stayed silent for a while before continuing, "Tianyun can act freely, but she won’t oppose all of Tianxing. She also has to be reasonable, right?

"After all, Yi Nian has violated Tianxing Laws by falling in love with an outsider. If this issue blows up and Tianyun insists on protecting them, you can argue that the Tianxing Laws have become useless at her hands and that Tianyun should just be the law."

"That's great!" Cui Yin exclaimed, "Well said, Second Hall Master. We truly share the same sentiment!"

Qiu Baiyi’s expression stiffened, and his lips twitched before he forced a smile. "The second thing that you have to do is to bring more people—more adjudicators. Not that I doubt you, Justice Officer Cui, but this matter is critical, as it affects the reputation of the Hall of Justice.

"You must stand united, and we must prepare for the worst. If Tianyun insists on protecting them and you end up getting subdued by her, the Hall of Justice's reputation would basically vanish."

Cui Yin’s face grew darker. Tianyun had already subdued him not too long ago!

At the time, he thought Tianyun would be afraid of the Hall of Justice, but she had acted decisively against them without even an ounce of hesitation whatsoever!

Cui Yin felt deeply humiliated by the incident.

Cui Yin took a deep breath, forcing down his anger.

"I heard that when you tried to arrest Ye Guan, Tianyun openly protected him," Qiu Baiyi sighed and said, "I'm an outsider, but even I found that it was a bit too much for her to do that. You were just doing your duty—what wrong was there in that?

"Despite that, Tianyun acted in such an unreasonable way. Never mind, I shouldn’t say more, or it will sound like I’m sowing discord."

"Alas, she’s a High Goddess, so what can we do?" Cui Yin remarked, sounding bitter. He stared deeply at Qiu Baiyi and added, "Second Hall Master, you’re not bad. Forgive my bluntness, but the Evil Dao Alliance has fallen into decline. There’s no future there.

"Why not join us? You’re an outsider, but I can surely make an exception for you."

Qiu Baiyi pretended to appear "honored" by the offer, "I’m flattered, Justice Officer Cui, but I owe the First Hall Master a great debt. Leaving now would make me appear ungrateful, so I must decline your kind offer."

Cui Yin shook his head slightly, "Second Hall Master, you’re smart, but your vision has tunneled, becoming extremely narrow."

With that, Cui Yin and his men disappeared into the distant horizon.

Left all alone, Qiu Baiyi rubbed his temples and muttered, "Dealing with idiots sure is exhausting…"